SteveSynakowskiRA_ProjectList_Skills

Architectural Projects Outline

Stephen Synakowski RA, NCARB, AISC

WASHINGTON DC, CHICAGO, NEW YORK; EMPLOYMENT + PRIVATE PRACTICE

Buildings Built through Understanding of Technics, Method, Project Delivery;

• TECHNICS;
STRONG TECHNICAL FOUNDATION INCLUDING COMPONENTS, TECHNOLOGIES, SPECIFICATIONS // ENGINEERING + CONSTRUCTION // LEED // -- BUILDABLE DESIGN BASED UPON BOTTOM UP UNDERSTANDING OF WHAT TECHNICAL FACTORS AND ITEMS SHAPE BUILDINGS; (CHICAGO BASED);

• METHOD;
DESIGN AND DELIVERY UNDERSTOOD THROUGH BUILDING FIT / STYLE IN RELATION TO SETTING AND CONTEXT // INNOVATIVE DESIGN DELIVERED THOUGH UNDERSTANDING OF DOCUMENTATION PROCESS, COMPUTER PARAMETRICS, KEY LEGAL, TECHNICAL, FINANCIAL CONSTRAINTS; (NEW YORK BASED);

• DELIVERY;
FOCUS ON CLIENT + DELIVERY // MANAGEMENT OF PROJECT, PROGRAM, COSTS //--ARCHITECTURE AND ENGINEERING FROM DESIGN TO FIELD DECISION MAKING, PROFESSIONAL SERVICES DELIVERING INNOVATION WITHIN BUDGET.

• STRATEGIC PLANNING; DYNAMIC + RESPONSIVE PROGRAM AND PROJECT MANAGEMENT / NETWORKS + CRITICAL PATHS;

List of Built Work + Designs

Civic & Cultural:

• Milwaukee Performing Arts Center. Renovations, Urban Park, RiverFront. Proposal for select Site Improvements, Site Sculpture, Landscape Architecture, Parking Garage Redesign. Harry Weese Original Architect. Dan Kiley and Associates Landscape Architect. National Competition. Exhibited. Project;
• Experimental Facility for the Display & Creation of the Public Art Works. Westport, CT. Design.

Multifamily:

• 40 story Residential Highrise. Hotel/Condominiums. New York. With articulated Glass Facade. 40th Street and Fifth Avenue and Bryant Park. Midtown New York. Design. With Graef Engineering Chicago. Design. Designed and Built by Others;
• 20 story Stagger Truss. New York. Chelsea HighLine District, New York. Midrise steel frame housing system proposed as a means to afford economic housing and mixed use commercial for New York and surrounding Boroughs. With Thornton Tomasetti Engineers Chicago. Design. Project;
• 2 Residential Highrises with Connecting Bridge at the High Line. New York. With lateral high

level pedestrian street. Proposed as a means to address high density living in high density cities such as New York and Hong Kong. Design;
• Midrise Prototypical Terrace Housing. Philadelphia. Two City Block Garden Terrace 2 Story Midrise Housing Design Proposal, Race Street, Downtown Philadelphia. Conceptualized as the start of a Proposed Redevelopment Plan, suitable for Large Scale Adaptation throughout the City. With Vertical Farms & Terraces Raised Patios & Gardens. Design;
• Urban Conference Center with Residential Towers. Philadelphia. Logan Circle on the Schulkyll Parkway. 300,000 gsf Modern Convention Center with 2000 Seat Auditorium. Masters Thesis. Design. Designed by KPF and Built by Others;
• 30 story Mixed Use Highise Tower with Commercial. Chicago. Greektown. With parking garage, magnet commercial. Design with Kaz Developers. Designed and Built by Others;

MultiFamily, Adaptive Reuse:

• 26 Story Condominium Conversion. Hotel to Condominiums. Chicago. Concrete Frame and Slab Construction involving Adaptive ReUse of Existing Historical Facility into Luxury Condominiums & Apartments. Former Chicago YMCA. Design for Follansbee Architects Developers. Designed and Built by Others;

• 90 unit Archer Canal Midrise Housing. Chicago. 90 units with parking. Residential / Commercial Renovation from Industrial Warehouse. 100 dwelling units, 6 floors, subgrade parking, 150,000 gsf, Chicago. Design with Philip R. Cohen Architects. Built. With Iseberg Developerment;
• 35 unit Oakey Erie Lowrise Housing. Chicago. 35 units with parking Residential Renovation/Adaptive Reuse from former Industrial Warehouse. 32 du, 2 floors, subgrade parking. 50,000 gsf. Chicago. Design with Philip R. Cohen Architects Built. With Iseberg Development;
• Affordable Scattered Site SIPS Housing. Chicago. Various Locations, Design;
• Harrison Western Avenue Townhomes. Chicago. 48 du Attached 4 story Masonry Townhomes, 60,000 gsf, All Design including Site Planning, Chicago. Design with Philip R. Cohen Architects. Built. With Iseberg Development;
• Cermak / Michigan Avenue Midrise. Chicago. 24 dwelling units, New 8 story Midrise Masonry Residential / Commercial. Design with Philip R. Cohen Architects;
• Milwaukee Avenue Midrise. Chicago. 20

dwelling units, New 6 story Midrise Masonry Residential/Commercial. Design with Philip R. Cohen Architects. Built by Others.;
• Chicago River Lowrise Housing Master Plan. Chicago. 88 New dwelling units Attached Riverfront Facing Townhomes with 74 du New Attached Townhomes. Unit Planning & Site Master Planning, Industrial Brownfield Site. Design with Philip R. Cohen Architects;
• Milwaukee Avenue Prefab Lowrise Manufactured Development. Chicago. 16 dwellong units, New 2 & 3 story Modular Townhomes. Chicago. Design with Philip R. Cohen Architects. Built by Others.

Educational / Institutional:

• The Child School, Roosevelt Island, NY. Owner Representation Services for $2MM Arts Center. With Justin Sager AIA;
• Eastchester Junior / Senior High School. Eastchester, BX. Main Auditorium Interiopr Recommendations, including fixtures, seating, color, lighting, architectural surfaces, mouldings. With Justin Sager AIA;

• Fort Sheridan Gym, Highland Park, Illinois. For Lake Forest College Feasibility Adaptive Reuse & MasterPlanning Studies. Proposed Various Planning and Building Development Strategies for College Reuse / Interpretation of 1895 Holabird and Root 24,000 gsf Military Gymnasium and Cavalry Drill Hall, Town of Fort Sheridan, Illinois. Project.;
• South Campus Dormitory Housing. Lake Forest College, Lake Forest, IL. Studies and Designs for Reinterpretation / Renovation of Original Dormitory Designs by Perkins + Will (1961) . Design Proposals. Designs built by others; Contemporary Student Commons Designs, with Dormitory Facade Modifications, (for original Perkins + Will Dormitories, built 1960);
• MultiUse / Auditorium Space Planning and Interior Design. Lake Forest College. Space Layout Proposals within the College Atheletic Center. Project;
• Halas Hall. Athletic Facility. Lake Forest, IL. Building engineering review, Technical Recommendations. Chicago Bears Athletic Facility at Lake Forest College. Engineering and Technical, Lake Forest, IL;
• Moore Hall. Lake Forest College. Dormitory Life Cycle Cost Analysis and Interior Designs, w/ Tweedie Associates Architects, Evanston, IL. Implemented;
• Young Hall. Lake Forest College. Main Administration Building. ADAAG Title III Studies and Recommendations, Implemented;

• Estonia Academy for the Arts, Talllin, Estonia. 300,000 gsf 55' Longspan 4" Reinforced Thin Concrete Slab Structure with Solar Glass Thermal Curtainwall. Structure built in the Medieval City, set on Piles. Proposal Succeeded To Final Round Competition. Design.;
• Bannockburn Primary School, Bannockburn, Illinois. Concept Design and Site Planning. Preliminary layout of new gymnasium, new classroom wing, and cafeteria renovations. With David Greenspan, APA. Design. Built by others.;
• Drury College Dormitory Village. Springfield, MO. Design. 300 du; with David Greenspan, APA (Project recommended for First Prize, by John Hejduk, formerly Dean, Cooper Union School of Architecture, New York). Springfield, Missouri. Design. Built by others.;
• Alabama High School for the Performing Arts. Birmingham, AL. Phased Design of One Entire Block of Downtown Birmingham, Alabama set around a central green urban court, for the organization and construction of a modern 200,000 gsf Urban Arts High School. Competition Proposal;
• Little Falls Senior High School, Little Falls, NY. Technical design and construction services. With Stetson Partnership/Harza Engineering.

Hospitality:

• Hotel Design. Minneapolis. 30 Stories with Semi Enclosed Atrium. Concrete Flat Plate Construction. With Wil Taubert AIA Chicago. Design.;
• European Restaurant Design. House of Kahn, formerly The Magic Pan. Walton Street and Michigan Avenue, Downtown Chicago. Design.

Commercial:

• Urban Retail Commercial Center Skokie, IL. 200,000 gsf, including Massing & Facade Designs. Grocery ,Fitness Sports Center, Anchor Tenants. All Attached and Detached Commercial. Project.;
• Retail Commercial Center. Vernon Hills, IL. Including Massing & Facade Designs. All Attached and Detached Commercial. 100,000 gsf. Project.;
• Tenant Building and Buildout Designs CarpetLand Franchises. Midwest. New Buildings and Renovations, Locations Midwest and Mountain States, United States. Designs + Built;

• Armani. Chicago, IL. Interior Renovation;
• Interior Buildout. Oak Street; Kahn Building, Walton Street, Chicago. Built. Demolished.
• Veterinary Surgical Center. Lincolnshire, IL. Buildout in existing Shopping Commercial Center, including various due diligence site studies at alternative locations. Vernon Hills. Built. Demolished.;
• CardioPulmonary Care Hospital Wing. Chicago South Side. With Andrew Mazurek, AHPA. Design.
• Mixed Use Medical Office Building. Libertyville, IL. Leasable Office Floors above. 24,000 gsf, Phase I. Through Design Development. Services included Feasibility Studies, Pricing, Phasing, Alternate Sites Studies. All Zoning Variations & All Alternative Use Permits. Libertyville, Illinois. Design. Built by Others;
• Golz Motors. Deerfield, IL. Building Over Building Lowrise Prototype: 100' Longspan Steel Trussing set on Micropiles with Precast Prestressed Concrete Plank Decking & Topping for Luxury Auto Storage & Display. 12,000 gsf, Deerfield, Illinois. With Thornton Tomasetti Structural Engineers. Chicago, Design.

• Residential Vertical Addition over Commercial. Chicago. Mixed Use Building Over Building Midrise Mixed Use Urban Prototype. New 3 Story Residential over Existing 3 Story Masonry Commercial. 12,000 gsf utilizing 3 Story Steel Longspan Trusses. Chicago. With Wil Taubert AIA Chicago. Design.;
• Portal Office Building, Harlem River Yards Developers, Bronx, NY. Spanning gate building with signage and offices as entry to 100 acre industrial yard on the East River, South Bronx. Not built.

Single Family:

• Contemporary Single Family. Torrington, CT. Design;
• Contemporary Townhouse. Riverdale, Bronx, NY. Design.;
• Contemporary Interior Design. Eastern Long Island, NY. Prototype unit in urban highrise. Design.;
• Contemporary Single Family. Princeton NJ. University Faculty Member, Princeton, New Jersey;
• Traditional Single Family. Bannockburn, IL. Classical Residence set within a 4 acre Forest Sculpture Garden. Design. North Shore, Chicago. 2 Story Garage with Lift, Landscape Design with Pond and Bridge. 10,000 gsf Residence, all Sustainable Design. 32 Geothermal Wells, 7 HVAC zones. Built. Published, Princeton Packet;

• Contemporary Residence Addition, Lake Forest, IL. Glass Residence Addition for a Small House by Charles Luckman (Lever House (Park Avenue), NYC, Architect with Gordon Bunschaft), Lake Forest, Illinois, Built; Interiors, Built; Patio and Elevated Deck, Built.;
• Contemporary Penthouse Addition. Chicago. IL. with Sustainable Improvements--including Roof Garden, Solar, Wind, GeoThermal, Radiant Slabs--for Two Family Traditional Masonry Townhome, North Side, Chicago. Design.;
• Traditional Single Family Homes for BattleFlag Development. Concord, MA. With John Marden Developers. Concord Massachusetts. Built.;
• Traditional Single Family Home. Essex, CT. Conversion of 150 year old timber church into Luxury Residence. Built..
• Modern Cape Bungalow. Edison, NJ. Addition and Alterations. Built.
• The Most Beautiful House in the World, International Design Competition, Exhibited Milan.
• Modular Plywood House Design for the Midwest. National Competition, APA , the American Plywood Association.

.

Landscape:

• Times Square NY. Virtual Display Proposal. Urban Commercial Symbolic Devices and Settings. Proposals for US Corporations, as part of Urban Landscapes and Building Designs within 21st century Urban Settings;
• William LeBaron Jenny Memorial. Graceland Cemetery. Chicago. Competition Exhibit for gravesite and headstone for Jenny and family. Work Exhibited. Chicago Architectural Foundation.
• Bronze Grave Furniture, Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, VA. JFK & RFK Graves. Landscape site design by John Carl Warnecke Architects, Washington, DC. Built.

Architectural Criticism & Publications:

• The Mythic Origins of the Architecture of Alvar Aalto. Book. Funding being sought through Graham Foundation, Chicago, & Fulbright Scholarship Fund. 200 page book with the author’s photographic illustrations utilizing 2000 full color 35 mm slides from European travels. With references to meetings & conferences with Aalto architectural staff and clients throughout Europe, Finland to Germany; Design, MidCentury Modern Home, Princeton.;
• Renovation/rebuild of a Patio House in Princeton NJ. Design Originally Inspired by Case Study House # 12 (“Arts & Architecture
Magazine", 1946). Design with Elizabeth Smith, Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago. (Now at Toronto Museum of Modern Art);
• Editorial Letter, in reference to Steven Holl proposed Addition to C Rennie Mackintosh Design for Glasgow School of Art, Glasgow, Scotland. To e-Architect (published in Glasgow Architecture, webzine), Adrian Welch, Editorial Director. Letter published online at e-Architect;

• Alvar Aalto, Woodberry Poetry Room at the Widener Library, Harvard University: Secured Primary Archival Architectural Working Drawings (1948) from the Alvar Aalto Foundation In Helsinki, Finland. For reference for Harvard University Restoration of Aalto Period Archival Interior.;
• Mies Van der Rohe, Farnsworth House. Preservation and FloodProofing. Proposal for Illinois Landmarks Preservation Commission. Implementation of Inflatable Floats and Demountable Piles. With David Bauman, President, ILPC; & Jay Pridmore, International Architectural Author;
• Preservation, Landplan and Building Adaptive Reuse Proposal, Barat College Campus of DePaul University, Lake Forest, Illinois. Design and Archival Research involving Adaptive Re-use/Renovation of 400,000 gsf 5 story Masonry Heavy Timber Period Dutch Revival Administration & Classroom Complex, with 27 acre Land Use Proposal; for 200 du New MultiFamily Housing (50 du Renovation, 150 du Landplan). With Illinois Landmarks Preservation Council, David Baumann President. Various pro bono studies and reports;
• Published Newspaper Article, Sustainability, Geothermal and Radiant Mechanicals in Various Office Projects, Princeton Town Topics Newspaper;
• Published Article on Campus Planning and Recommendations, Lake Forest College Annual Report, Outlining and Elaborating Perkins + Will 1961 Campus Planning Strategies, for the South Campus, Lake Forest, College.

Skills,

Experience;

Architectural + Engineering;

      BUILDING TECHNOLOGY

• Structural: Steel, concrete, wood. 

Collaboration with structural engineers on: 

• Tall buildings 

• Trusses 

• Frames 

• Precast / reinforced poured    

• Piles incl. helical.

• NFPA, Fire Safety 

SITE/CIVIL  

• Geotechnical; borings

• Legal, Topo Surveys

• Vertical Surveys

• Highways; Cut, Fill 

ENVIRONMENT 

• Shoreline stabilization 

• DEC, NYS Environmental 

• EPA, Water

• Sanitary, Stormwater Systems

• Detention, retention  

• Brownfield

FORENSICS 

• Expert Witness

• SME. Foundations, superstructures

• Iron including fire escapes

Skills, Experience; 

Program Types;

            MULTIFAMILY

      • Low, mid and highrse residential / commercial mixed use, new + existing envelopes. Built, designs.

            •  Built midrise urban adaptive resume to 100 du

            • Technical and design modern lowrise

            • Speculative designs highrise residentiall

      SCHOOLS

      •  Primary, secondary, collegiate. Classroom, residential, assembly. Buildings. Planning. US + Near East.

      OFFICE

      • Modern Office towers. US + Near East.

      ADAPTIVE REUSE

      • Multifamily residential, assembly, atheltic,  single family residential.

      COMMERCIAL

      • Free standing new and renovations. Medium + large suburban shopping centers.  

•  Medical office buildings.

      • Office Buildouts

      INTERIORS

      • Corporate Interiors,  financial and insurance offices. FFE. 

      •  Commercial interiors.

      •  
      
      Residential interiors. Traditonal and contemporary.

      URBAN DESIGN

      •  3 CDBG Urban Streetscapes, Chicago, IL,
•   1 CDBG-DR Community Reconstruction, NYC

      •
      Residential/commercial suburban community planning

      FEMA / SUSTAINABLE / RESILIENCY

      •
      Disaster relief. CDBG; Shoreline NYC with NYC Mayor's Office. Engineering + Environmental re IBTS.

      •  Tier II Qualified National Disaster Site Inspector. Califormia.

      TECHNICAL 

      •  NYCDOB Permit Filing Rep;

      • NYSDEC Liason Region II, NYC DEC Environmental;

•  Zoning Variations;

            • Teaching, AutoCad;

            •Building and Facility Programming;

            •Cost estimates and projections

            • Land and legal surveying

            •  Construction Field observations

Licenses + Registrations;

      • NCARB Certification;
      
      State Architectural
Licenses
      
      • STATE OF NEW YORK;
      
      • STATE OF NEW JERSEY;

      • COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS;
      
      • STATE OF CONNECTICUT;
      
      • STATE OF ILLINOIS;

      Other Registrations

      • NYCDOB;
      
New York City Permit
Filing Representative;

• CEDAR;

       Code Enforcement Disaster Relief. For  Building
Site Investigations  Nationwide Tier II following First Responders (flood,
fire, earthquake)

Professional Perspectives - Project Management;

• Process relating engineering and architecture data-- program, objects and schedules -- defines design and delivery. Components, Cost, Program and Schedule drive the product. RA as proposer of Form is part of larger Process.

• Computers allow design and construction to merge into bigger and bigger information and data flows. Computers increasingly involved with larger and more complex buildings, esp. Healthcare.

URBAN FOCUS

STRATEGIC TALENTS

COST FOCUS

BUDGET FOCUS 

• Educational, Multifamily,
Industrial, Transportation.

View City as sustainable, economically defensible.

Interest in both buildings + capital improvements.

City as creating value - financial, social, visual, economic, intellectual.

• Project Planning at
large scale.

Strongest at project front
end.

Big picture with ability to address detail.

Skilled in evaluating pattern
alternatives in space and time:

- Adaptive reuse floor plans with fixed perimeters;

- Schedules and flows in relation to deadlines and phasing.

Technical + Legal Due Diligence.

Scheduling, models, alternatives, management software, cost software.

PM, Contract Administration.

• Building materials and products define schedule and cost.

Focus on building and component delivery strategies in relation to engineering, assembly and construction.

Document and Building delivery in terms of parametrics and variables.

Construction phase PM and coordination with on site mechanics and contractors.

Engineering incl. structural. Conc.,
steel, wood.

MEP Systems.

Modular, manufactured.

Turnkey. Filing and admin. including Change Orders, field orders. RFI, PW, TR, COs, PI, SI, etc.

• Experience with a variety of program types.

Range of contract types:
AIA, CMAA;

Range of employment settings: Corporate, private, public/private.

Clients include private boards and individuals,
developers, engineers, architects, insurance, public/private agencies, government.

Urban focus.

-Planning;

-Subject Matter Expert;

-Project Management;

Resume

stevesynakowski@hotmail.com